Friday, June 12, 2015 Follow us on Twitter @Argus_The Guide In The Spotlight


Lower Machen Festival


FORTY-EIGHT years ago the first steps were taken to start a festival in the twelfth century church of St Michaels and All Angels, Lower Machen. Since those ambitious early days this festival has established it- self as a gem of the Welsh mu- sic calendar. For me it will be the fourth


time that I’ve covered it for this newspaper and it is always one of the great pleasures of the early summer to go along to hear someworld-class music making in the tranquillity and lovely acoustic of St Michaels. Hidden a couple of hundred yards off the Newport/Car- philly Road, I believe the term that is usually used is “rural idyll” – it certainly applies here and one could be in any of the loveliest parts of rural England (or Wales ). Recent festivals have includ-


ed performances from inter- nationally acclaimed musi- cians of the calibre of Peter Donohoe, Michael Collins,the Schubert Ensemble, Joanna MacGregor and VOCES8. This year’s line-up of musicians is as varied and as stellar as ever. As always, there is a clearly


youthful dimension tomuchof it. This year it is provided by trumpet player Matilda Lloyd (winner of the Brass section of the BBC young musician competition and also the BBC Radio 2 Brass Award in 2014) who plays a recital at The Riv- erfront on the Tuesday. There is also a late night concert of new works portraying stories of ghosts, spirits and legends performed in the shadow of


RECITAL: Annabel Thwaite and Matthew Jones


the old church by the youthful Adventus Quartet – bring your torch. On the Saturday morn- ing there is even a family con- cert (Little Notes) for babies, tots and their carers in which children can roam about and listen to music the way they feel it as they observe musi- cians on real instruments – bring your teddy. This year’s festival is large-


ly organised into a series of themed concerts – each tak- ing a country as its starting point – Russian night, German night and so on. The French night is given by


the La Mer trio featuring the mellifluous combination of


flute, viola and harp, which was so suited to the musical language of the French Im- pressionists at the start of the 20th century. On the Thursday evening


SOUNDS OF BRASS: Matilda Lloyd


the Welsh Chamber Players are conducted by festival or- ganiser Peter Esswood in the French night in which they are joined by Elin Manahan Thomas (soprano) and Robin Blaze (counter tenor) plus Ma- tilda Lloyd who performs the Torelli concerto on a piccolo trumpet. The Germannight brings Ba- roque specialists the Feinstein ensemble in a programmethat includes Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No 5 and Handel’s Water Music, and the music of Britain is the focus of a recital at The Riverfront by Mathew Jones (violin/viola) and An- nabel Thwaite (piano). This includes the music of Britten and his teacher Frank Bridge. Young Korean virtuoso Sunwook Kim (winner of the Leeds piano competitionwhen only 18) gives the traditional piano recital. He plays Bach, Scriabin and Schubert. The week ends with the Heath string quartet who play an attractive programme of Haydn and Tchaikovsky and are joined bySunwwokKimin the Schumann piano quintet. This will be a week of won- derful music making but here are three major works that I have chosen to highlight par- ticularly and I can guarantee that they will be worth the short journey out of town to experience. On Friday evening the Ar- monico Consort perform one work – the Rachmaninov Ves- pers. Though best known for his piano and symphonic mu- sic Rachmaninov also wrote


a considerable number of choral pieces. Composed in 1913, this work is the culmi- nation of the Russian choral tradition – by turns haunting, moving and magnificent. The composer clearly loves the resonant sound of sepulchral Slavic basses and incorpo- rates it into this epic piece of 12-part a cappella choral mu- sic. This is a concert not to be missed. Another vocal masterpiece


can be heard on the previous night when Elin Manahan Thomas and Robin Blaze per- form the intense masterpiece of Italian composer Giovanni Pergolesi – his Stabat Mater. Detailing the Virgin’s suffer- ing at the foot of the Cross, it is enormously varied in expres- sion and clearly owes a debt to the composer’s background as a composer of opera. It turned out to be Pergolesi’s last work and has become one of the most popular and enduring works of the eighteenth cen- tury. My third choice is the clos-


ing work of Sunwook Kim’s recital – the Piano sonata No 21 in B flat major by Schu- bert – composed two months before his death aged 31. Like Beethoven, Schubert’s late so- natas hold a very special place in the piano repertoire. The last three are in effect great musical soliloquies in which time is suspended. This sona- ta, in particular, has a restless inward-looking quality that eludes expression – especially in its other wordly slow move- ment. The Lower Machen Festival


runs from June 23-28, and full details of all the events can be found on lowermachenfesti- val.co.uk or phone 08448700887 for tickets.


By


GERAINT DAVIES


Festival is music calendar gem


5 Culture


Join outdoor party for this Winter’s Tale


OUTDOOR EVENT: The Winters Tale


TAKING Flight Theatre present their own jazz- fuelled version of Shake- speare’s The Winter’s Tale at outdoor sites all over Wales and the West. Shakespeare’s romantic tragi-comedy is a story of loss, repentance, love and reconciliation. Audiences are invited


to join the live outdoor, jazz-infused party where toe-tapping music might even get you dancing. Then watch as jealousy destroys this vibrant world, leaving it devoid of promise and in a state of eternal win- ter. Elise Davison, director of The Winter’s Tale and founder/artistic director of Taking Flight Theatre, said while in the midst of rehearsals: “Not only is this one of the most com- plicated and controversial of Shakespeare’s plays but Taking Flight are also in- tegrating live music and songs as well as British Sign Language and audio description. The detail and time it takes to do all of this is staggering but the results are really exciting. A multi-layered theatrical experience with plenty of surprises in store. “I have wanted to tackle


this ‘problem’ play for some time nowas I feel it lends it- self to Taking Flight’s style – a group of actors putting on a show for the enjoy- ment of the whole audi- ence, an event, a communi- ty feeling and a production that tries to put the audi- ence first. It’s Shakespeare but it’s not a traditional take on his work.” Every performance is relaxed and is supported with BSL/SSE and audio description and there will be touch tours upon request – please call or text Alastair on 07932 601859, script available in


advance. They can also sup- ply easyread programmes. Seating can be reserved in advance, but it’s best to take blankets/portable chairs if you have/need them. This performance moves around. If you would like to discuss access or have any requirements/sugges- tions please contact beth@ takingflighttheatre.co.uk or call on 07785 947823. For booking information


and full tour dates, please visit www.takingflightthea- tre.co.uk


Tour Dates Thompson’s Park Cardiff (book through Chapter Arts Centre) Fri, June 12, 6.30pm Sat and Sun, June 13 and


14, 2pm and 6.30pm Weds, June 17, 6.30pm Thurs, June 18, 12.00 and 6.30pm


Fri, June 19, secret perfor- mance.


For booking at Chapter – www.chapter.org or 02920 304400.


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